Ka-Pop! Snacks, makers of Ancient Grain Popped Chips & Puffs, and Bubba's Fine Foods, makers of Paleo & Keto-friendly snacks, granolas, and private-label goods, recently announced a merger agreement. This new company, operating as Awakened Foods, will compete in the fastest-growing food trends in the $110B global healthy snacks market and the $38B global cereal/granola market.

"The combination of two companies at this early trajectory is extraordinary. Rarely is there such a perfect fit in culture, capabilities, products, and innovation. This merger allows us to simultaneously accelerate our top and bottom line, building on an already strong gross margin foundation and 2020 growth rates of over 200 percent," said Dustin Finkel, CEO of Awakened Foods. 

Jeff Schmidgall, COO of Awakened Foods, added, "Leveraging new capital and the best-in-class manufacturing infrastructure built over the last six years at Bubba's Fine Foods, Awakened Foods is ready to take on the meteoric growth of our branded businesses.  Simultaneously, we will apply our decades of experience in manufacturing excellence to fast-track our private label and co-manufacturing division, Awakened Food Crafters." 

The merger will operate under Awakened Foods, headquartered in Loveland, Colorado.

"We believe making and sharing food is a sacred privilege. We take that responsibility incredibly seriously as both Jeff and I have overcome mental and physical health challenges by committing to clean eating and a healthy lifestyle. Our products represent the best potential of food—uncompromising in their taste and health—bringing joy back to healthy eating," said Dustin Finkel. "The historic wins across our brands and channels, including the #1 launches on Amazon in 3 categories in 2020 for Bubba's Keto Granola, Keto Snack Mix, and Ka-Pop! Vegan Cheddar Puffs are just a peek at our potential."

Dustin Finkel will lead Awakened Foods as CEO (former CEO/Founder of Ka-Pop! Snacks), and Jeff Schmidgall will take over as COO (former CEO/Founder of Bubba's Fine Foods). Combined, they bring over 45 years of CPG leadership, manufacturing, and finance experience.

Related: Ka-Pop! Snacks offers ancient grain snacking alternatives